Elementary School Program

COLLEGE READINESS & CAREER EXPLORATION PROGRAM FOR

ELEMENTARY SCHOOL STUDENTS

Your College and Career Path Starts Here

Program Overview

For the past 10 years, we have welcomed students from around the world to our exciting college readiness, career exploration, and academic enrichment summer program for middle school students (current 2nd – 5th grade students). Now, you can join them!

We invite you to devote a portion of your summer to help you explore and experience different career pathways to help you learn about various types of careers, and discover your future career interests.

Career Exploration Seminars & Simulations

  • You will participate in career exploration seminars and receive hands-on experience with a variety of careers through 25 different simulation studios (i.e., Engineering Studio, Science Lab, Nursing & Health Care Studio, and Website Design & Development Studio ) to help you learn about various career paths and discover your future career interests.
  • Our summer program operates for 8 or 9 weeks at most site locations. You will choose one career simulation studio that you are interested in exploring every two weeks during the program. Therefore, you will only be able to enroll in up to 4 different career simulation studios out of the 25 simulation studios offered every summer at NAPCA. Enrollment in each simulation studio is on a first come, first serve basis.

Academic Enrichment Courses

  • Supplemental academic instruction courses in writing and grammar, mathematics, and public speaking will be provided to help you meet and/or exceed common core state standards in mathematics and English language arts for your current grade level.
    • You will strengthen your confidence and foundational math skills to improve your overall performance in school for the next grade level.
    • You will improve your vocabulary, reading comprehension skills, and receive targeted instruction in sentence writing, paragraph writing, grammar and mechanics, and introductory essay writing.
    • You will learn how to become an effective public speaker! You will discover how to talk confidently and persuasively to both large audiences and small groups. You will learn how to plan and deliver presentations skillfully and how to manage one of the most common public speaking barriers—fear of failure.

Academic Tutoring

  • You will be provided with academic tutoring in math and English language arts to help you improve your confidence and academic performance.
  • Tutoring focuses on two key areas to help you master grade level common core state standards in mathematics and English language arts. First, we will administer a needs assessment aligned with your current grade level common core state standards in mathematics and English language arts to identify your learning gap. Then, we will work with you to close the gap based on the assessment.

Academic Skills Development Seminar

  • You will engage in academic skills development seminars to nurture within you, effective learning habits to succeed in school. Seminar topics include effective study skills, note taking, time management, and organization skills.

Social-Emotional Skills Development Seminar

  • You will participate in interactive social-emotional development workshops to help you manage your emotions, build healthy relationships, validate your assumptions, and control your impulses, negative thoughts, and feelings.

College Tours

  • You will discover college life through interactive college tours designed specifically for elementary school students.

Fun Activities & Excursions

  • Looking for fun things to do this summer? We’ve got you covered. You will participate in a variety of fun indoor and outdoor activities that will provide you with an unforgettable summer experience.

PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS

Career Simulation Studios

Students will receive hands-on experience with a variety of careers through 17 career simulation studios to get a taste of what a future career might be like.

Learn More

Career Exploration Seminars & Guest Speakers

Students will participate in career exploration seminars to discover their future career interests and learn about various types of careers.

Learn More

College Tours: Experience College Life

Students will experience college life through interactive visits to two year and four year college campuses designed exclusively for elementary school students.

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Summer Mathematics Course

Students will strengthen their confidence and foundational skills in mathematics to improve their overall performance in school for the next grade level.

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Academic Writing Course

Students will improve their vocabulary and receive instruction in English grammar and the mechanics of writing.

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Public Speaking Course

Students will discover how to speak confidently and persuasively to both large audiences and small groups.

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Dining on Campus

Continental breakfast, lunch, healthy snacks, and occasional treats will be provided. We do our best to cater to dietary restrictions and selective food eaters.

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Exclusive Guest Speakers

Students will gain valuable insight on future careers and learn strategies on how to achieve their education and career goals from guest speakers from various industries.

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Virtual Career Simulations

Students will participate in exclusive behind-the-scenes virtual career simulations to get a taste of what a future career might be like.

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Academic Enrichment in Mathematics, Pre-College Writing, Reading Comprehension, and Public Speaking

The academic enrichment component of the program provides supplemental academic instruction, which focuses on the following:

  • Closing the learning gaps in your student’s reading, writing and math skills to improve their overall performance in school.
  • Preparing your student academically to get at least one grade level ahead in reading, writing and math.
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Social - Emotional Skills Development

Social-emotional skills help us manage our emotions, build healthy relationships, and show empathy and understanding. Kids with healthy social-emotional skills are more likely to succeed in school, work, and life. The social-emotional skills development course focuses on helping students acquire the following skills:

  • Make friends and maintain friendships
  • Gain confidence
  • Resolve conflicts
  • Manage stress and anxiety
  • Learn social norms
  • Make appropriate decisions
  • Resist negative social pressure
  • Learn strengths and weaknesses
  • Gain awareness of what others are feeling
  • Validating your assumptions
  • Controlling your impulses, negative thoughts, and feelings
Learn More

Academic Skills Development

NAPCA offers academic skills development seminars that provide students with the tools and strategies to become self motivated and responsible learners with a positive attitude and effective learning habits to succeed in school. Seminar topics include:

  • Effective study skills
  • Note taking
  • Time management
  • Keeping yourself organized
  • Managing your stress and anxiety
Learn More

Program Culmination: Poster Session

Students will showcase their personal strategic action plan poster (education and career plan) and celebrate their NAPCA Summer Academy experience with their peers, NAPCA Staff, and family. The poster presentation will display each student's written post secondary education and career goal along with specific action steps to achieve their future academic and career aspirations.

Career Tours

All NAPCA participants will experience exclusive career tours to get a taste of what a future career might be like and build connections with professionals from different career fields to help them gain insight into their future careers.

Student Safety & Supervision

Student safety and supervision are our first priority at NAPCA. Campus security officers frequently patrol all campus facilities used by the program. Students are supervised by a NAPCA staff member throughout their entire day as they move from activity to activity in our small group format.

FUN ACTIVITIES & EXCURSIONS

Disneyland

For six decades, Disneyland has captured imaginations, stirred emotions, and unleashed the unabashed joy of childhood in millions of guests. Now's the time to live out your Disney Dream with your NAPCA family!

Sky Zone Trampoline Park

Join us for a fun workout, slam dunk on a 10-foot basketball net, flip into a pool of foam, or simply bounce around!

Inflatable Water Slides

Students will have the opportunity to play inflatable games such as "wipe out" and cool down from the summer heat by enjoying our inflatable water slides.

Inflatable Games

Students will have the opportunity to splash around and cool down from the summer heat by enjoying our Inflatable Water Park!

Six Flags Magic Mountain

Are you a thrill seeker? Come out to Six Flags with NAPCA and the staff and enjoy the gold standard of theme parks.

Six Flags Hurricane Harbor

Be cool! NAPCA is ready to take you out to the water slides and lots of refreshingly cool water.

WHY CHOOSE NAPCA?

I chose to attend NAPCA because...

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You will go on college tours to learn about different types of colleges, academic majors, and how college can help you reach your career goals.

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It’s really cool that you can experience different careers through 17 career simulation studios such as Acting for Film to help you discover what career interests you.

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You will make new friends and there is a bunch of fun stuff for you to do there. The teachers are really nice and they will help you improve in math, writing, and public speaking.

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You will learn about different careers that will help you figure out what you want to be when you grow up.

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You will strengthen your confidence and skills in math and writing to improve your overall performance in school.

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You will learn how to speak confidently to deliver presentations in front of your class and to large audiences.

NAPCA Difference: “The NAPCA Family Commitment”

  • After students complete one of our college and career exploration summer programs, they will be invited to remain in the NAPCA family through participating in our year-round college and career readiness counseling program.
  • Students will be assigned to a NAPCA college and career readiness counselor who will provide academic support and college and career advising services throughout elementary, middle, high school, and college at no cost.
  • After our students graduate from college, they will continue to receive academic and career advising services at no cost until they have reached their career goal.

To learn more about the NAPCA Family Commitment, contact us at support@NAPCAonline.org.

PROGRAM OUTCOMES

College & Career Exploration

  • Develop new friendships while experiencing college life, exploring and experiencing different career paths, and developing the mindset and skills needed to succeed in school and beyond.
  • A written post-secondary education and career goal for the students along with specific action steps to achieve their future college and career aspirations.
  • Learn about post-secondary education and the variety of post-secondary training that leads to various respectable careers.
  • Build awareness around the world of work and the importance of education to a successful life.
  • Build awareness that learning, critical thinking, and working hard are key habits to develop to be a happy and successful worker in the future.
  • Understand the importance of individual effort, hard work, resiliency, and persistence.
  • Understand the relationship of academic achievement to current and future success in primary and secondary school, college, and future careers.
  • Students understand the effect of career choices on quality of life.

 

Academic Enrichment in Math, Pre-College Writing, Reading, and Public Speaking

  • Preparing your student academically to perform at grade level standards and get at least one grade level ahead in reading, writing, and math to prepare for advanced classes in middle and high school (such as Honors (H) , International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Program, and Advanced Placement (AP) courses), which will help students prepare academically for college.

Elementary Program Curriculum Snapshot

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Sample Program Schedule

Before and after program care is available Monday – Friday from 6:30am – 7:30am and in the evening from 6:00pm – 7:00pm. Please contact us directly at support@napcaonline.org for additional information and pricing.

Campus Tours are available for new students and their parents each day during the summer. Please contact us directly at support@napcaonline.org for more information about tours.

6:30am - 7:30am Pre-Program Care

7:30am - 8:00am Continental Breakfast

Pre – Program Care is available daily from 6:30am – 7:30am

Our program starts at 8:00am. Parents can drop off their child as early as 7:30am.

If parents need to drop off their child before 7:30am, students must be enrolled in pre-program care.

Academic Tutoring: Tutoring is available daily in Mathematics & English Language Arts.

Continental Breakfast: We provide our students with a light continental breakfast daily from 7:30 – 8:00am, which includes items such as bagels, fruit, yogurt, and french toast sticks.

Healthy Snacks Offered to Students During Break Time: Fruit, veggies, yogurt, and other healthy snacks are served during break times throughout the day from 10am to 5pm. We also provide an organic popsicle as a healthy treat.

8:00am-11:30am Academic Enrichment

Mathematics Course: 1 hour of Math instruction plus a 10 minute break per day. Accelerated Math instruction will be offered to students.
Writing & Grammar Course: 1 hour of Vocabulary Building, Reading Comprehension, and Writing & Grammar instruction plus a 10 minute break per day.
Public Speaking course:  1 hour of public speaking instruction plus a 10 minute break per day.

Healthy Snacks Offered During Break Time: Fruit, veggies, yogurt, and other healthy snacks are served during break times.

11:30am - 12:25pm Lunch & Recreational Activities

Lunch: Students choose their lunch. During the morning check in, students order their lunch which includes an entree, beverage, and a number of sides.

Recreational Activities: Students will have the opportunity to engage in healthy competition as they participate in various sports and group activities.

12:30pm -1:55pm Career Simulation Studios

Career Simulation Studios: 1.5 hours including a 10 minute break

25 CAREER SIMULATION STUDIOS
Our career simulation studios help students explore and experience different career options through experiential learning activities and cutting-edge technologies where students can dig deep into their passions and get a taste of what a future career might be like.

  • Fashion Design Studio
  • Beauty & Skin Care Studio
  • Arts & Crafts Studio
  • Screenwriting, Film making & Photography Studio
  • Agricultural Science Studio
  • Architecture Design Studio
  • Dance Studio
  • The Baking Studio
  • Engineering Studio
  • Nursing & Health Care Studio
  • America’s Next Top Model Studio
  • DJ Music Mixing & Beat Making Studio
  • Acting for Film & Television Studio
  • Graphic Design Studio
  • Website Design & Development Studio
  • Video Editing Studio
  • The Science Lab
  • Veterinary Medicine & Animal Care Studio
  • Business & Entrepreneurship Studio
  • Aviation & Aerospace Studio
  • Medical Physician Studio
  • Optometry Studio
  • Dentistry Studio
  • Pharmacy Studio
  • Law & Trial Advocacy Studio

 

Healthy Snacks Offered During Break Time: Fruit, veggies, yogurt, and other healthy snacks are served during break times.

2:00pm - 2:30pm College & Career Exploration Seminar
2:35pm - 3:40pm Academic Skills Development Seminar &
Social-Emotional Skills Development Seminar

Career Exploration Seminars & Demonstrations: 2:00pm to 2:30pm

30 minutes per day

Academic Skills Development Workshop for Student Success: 2:35pm to 3:05pm

30 minutes per day

Social-Emotional Development Seminar: 3:10pm to 3:40pm

30 minutes per day

 

Healthy Snacks Offered to Students During Break Time: Fruit, veggies, yogurt, and other healthy snacks are served during break times.

3:40pm - 4:30pm Supervised Indoor & Outdoor Activities

Indoor & Outdoor Fun Activities: 50 min 

Students participate in a variety of high-energy indoor and outdoor games and activities.

Healthy Snacks Offered to Students: Fruit, veggies, yogurt, and other healthy snacks are served.

4:30pm - 5:00pm Academic Study Hall

Academic Study Hall 

Study Hall offers a supervised, safe, distraction-free environment so students can get their assignments done efficiently.  Our staff will be available to provide one-on-one academic tutoring. Please contact us directly at support@napcaonline.org for additional information.

Healthy Snacks Offered to Students: Fruit, veggies, yogurt, and other healthy snacks are served.

5:00pm - 6:00pm Supervised Indoor & Outdoor Activities

Indoor & Outdoor Fun Activities: 1 hr

Students participate in a variety of high-energy indoor and outdoor games and activities.

6:00pm - 7:00pm After Program Care

After Program Care Available

Students that participate in after program care will be provided with dinner at 6:00pm. During the morning check in, students order their dinner which includes an entree, beverage, and a number of sides.

Please contact us directly at support@napcaonline.org for additional information and pricing.

Faculty-&-Staff

Faculty & Staff:

Carefully-vetted program staff recruited from top universities

Our selective hiring practices yield the most highly qualified, passionate instructors from top universities such as UCLA, USC, UC Berkeley, Harvard, and Stanford.

 

Thorough background checks

We take safety seriously. All staff members undergo extensive background and reference checks.

 

Trained in person

There’s no substitute for in-person training. We train our staff to ensure they are prepared to educate and inspire students.

 

Experienced and passionate teachers and counseling staff

We adhere to a policy of no “Teachers or Counselors in Training.” Instead, you’ll find experienced and passionate teachers and counseling staff that know how to engage students, break down difficult academic concepts, and place students on a path for success.

Testimonials

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Program Dates, Hours, and Locations

Program Dates

Program takes place during summer vacation, from June 15 to August 14. Specific dates vary by location and are subject to change depending on school calendars.  Our program is closed on Friday, July 4th, 2020.

Program Hours of Operations

Our program operates from 8:00am to 6:00pm. Parents can drop off their child as early as 7:30am.

Before and after program care is available Monday – Friday from 6:30am – 7:30am and in the evening from 6:00pm – 7:00pm. Please contact us directly at support@napcaonline.org for additional information and pricing.

Program Locations

Our programs are promoted to all students and families in local communities across California, Arizona, Nevada, and Florida. Each program site has limited space availability and spots fill up fast.

When completing the online application, please designate which program location you would like to attend. Please choose your top three program locations. We will do our best to enroll your student in their top choice location.

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PROGRAM FEES

Membership Options & Fees

  • Purchase any number of Day Passes and use them anytime.
  • Unused Day Passes can be used for NAPCA summer programs offered the following year.
  • You can even upgrade to our Season Pass and have your previous Day Pass purchases credited towards the season pass membership fee.
  • Day Passes can be transferred between family members and friends. Pass transfer is only good for this summer.
  • Buy 1 – 4 day passes: $110 per day
  • Buy 5 – 9 day passes: $100 per day
  • Buy 10 – 14 day passes: $90 per day
  • Buy 15 – 19 day passes: $80 per day
  • Buy 20 – 24 day passes: $70 per day
  • Buy 25 or more day passes: $60 per day
  • With the purchase of 20 or more day passes for one student, you will receive a free day pass that can be gifted to another student.
  • We do not prorate membership fees or give refunds for any missed or sick days. No Exceptions.
  • One fee ($500) covers one week.
  • Upgrade to a Season Pass at any point.
  • Includes a free day pass that can be gifted to a family member or friend. Free Day Pass requires advance registration, is good for summer 2020 only, and has no monetary value.
  • Parents must enroll in an automatic recurring payment agreement authorizing weekly electronic charges to a designated payment card on the scheduled charge dates for the amounts due.
  • We do not prorate membership fees or give refunds for any missed or sick days. No Exceptions.
  • $450 per week
  • Upgrade to a Season Pass at any point.
  • Includes a free day pass that can be gifted to a family member or friend. Free Day Pass requires advance registration, is good for summer 2020 only, and has no monetary value.
  • Parents must enroll in an automatic recurring payment agreement authorizing weekly electronic charges to a designated payment card on the scheduled charge dates for the amounts due.
  • We do not prorate membership fees or give refunds for any missed or sick days. No Exceptions.
  • $400 per week
  • Upgrade to a Season Pass at any point.
  • Includes a free day pass that can be gifted to a family member or friend. Free Day Pass requires advance registration, is good for summer 2020 only, and has no monetary value.
  • Parents must enroll in an automatic recurring payment agreement authorizing weekly electronic charges to a designated payment card on the scheduled charge dates for the amounts due.
  • We do not prorate membership fees or give refunds for any missed or sick days. No Exceptions.
  • $350 per week
  • Upgrade to a Season Pass at any point.
  • Includes a free day pass that can be gifted to a family member or friend. Free Day Pass requires advance registration, is good for summer 2020 only, and has no monetary value.
  • Parents must enroll in an automatic recurring payment agreement authorizing weekly electronic charges to a designated payment card on the scheduled charge dates for the amounts due.
  • We do not prorate membership fees or give refunds for any missed or sick days. No Exceptions.
  • $300 per week.
  • Upgrade to a Season Pass from a day pass plan at any point.
  • Includes a free day pass that can be gifted to a family member or friend. Free Day Pass requires advance registration, is good for summer 2020 only, and has no monetary value.
  • If you don’t use more than 20 days or 4 weeks of your Season Pass Membership, we’ll calculate what you would have paid at the 20 Day Pass membership rate and refund the difference.
  • Parents must enroll in an automatic recurring payment agreement authorizing weekly electronic charges to a designated payment card on the scheduled charge dates for the amounts due.
  • We do not prorate membership fees or give refunds for any missed or sick days. No Exceptions.
  • One Free Day Pass requires advance registration, is good for summer 2020 only, and has no monetary value.

CAMP DISCOUNTS

Summer planning season is here and NAPCA is offering great incentives and promotions. Enroll early to receive the best camp discount!

Early Bird Discount

Save up to $200:
  • Pay your total cost of attendance in Full before March 30th, 2020 and you will receive one of the following:
    • $100 off your total cost to attend program for 1 week of camp purchase.
    • $150 off your total cost to attend program for 2 – 4 weeks of camp purchase.
    • $200 off your total cost to attend program for 5 – 9 weeks of camp purchase.

Spring Break Discounts

Receive $25 off each week of camp:
  • Pay your total cost of attendance in Full by April 17th, 2020 and you will receive $25 off each week of camp you purchase.
Receive $20 off each week of camp:
  • Pay 50% of your total cost of attendance by April 17th, 2020 and you will receive $20 off each week of camp you purchase.
  • Parents will make equal weekly payments towards the remaining balance due on their child’s NAPCA student account.
Receive $15 off each week of camp:
  • Pay 25% of your total cost of attendance to secure your enrollment in the program by April 17th, 2020 and you will receive $15 off each week of camp you purchase.
  • Parents will make equal weekly payments towards the remaining balance due on their child’s NAPCA student account. Parents must enroll in an automatic recurring payment agreement authorizing weekly electronic charges to a designated payment card on the scheduled charge dates for the amounts due.

 

Note: Spring break discounts may not be combined with other discounts or scholarships.

Sibling Discount

Receive $10 off each week of camp, after the first sibling.
  • After your first child’s enrollment, get $10 off each week of camp purchased for each additional sibling.
  • Two or more campers in the same family must be enrolled for the same weeks in order to receive the discount.

 

Note: Sibling discount can be combined with scholarships awarded by NAPCA as well as the early bird and spring break camp discounts.

Admission Requirements

Grade Requirement:

Current 1st-5th grade students are invited to apply for admission to the NAPCA Summer Academy.

Academic Performance:

We are looking for students who are serious about academics and have a strong commitment to strengthening their academic performance in school.

Teacher Recommendation:

We require one recommendation for each student applying for admission to understand their academic background. The recommender must be from an academic teacher. Ask the recommender to complete the Online Recommendation form for your child, which can be found and completed at

summer.napcaonline.org/teacher-recommendation

DOWNLOAD: TEACHER RECOMMENDATION REQUEST LETTER

  • Instructions: We highly suggest that parents download and print the Teacher Recommendation Request Letter.
    • Students applying to the program should take the responsibility to hand-deliver the letter to their academic teacher and kindly ask their teacher to complete the online teacher recommendation form.
    • Alternatively, the parent can send their child’s teacher an email asking to complete the online teacher Recommendation form. The parent should attach the Teacher Recommendation Request Letter to the email.

Admissions Interview:

After you have submitted a complete online application, including the required documents for admission, the student and their parent(s) will be contacted by one of our staff members and will be asked to complete an admissions interview via telephone or video chat.

Admissions Process:

  • Applications for admission are reviewed weekly, and admission decisions are made on a rolling basis. We will take applications until all seats have been filled. Students are notified of their acceptance to the program within two weeks of submitting their online admissions application. There is NO application fee and the deadline to apply!

 

Apply Now

Online Application

We are accepting applications for summer 2020. 

What You’ll Need to Submit a Complete Application for Admission

Please prepare the following information for your Admissions Application. You will NOT be able to submit a COMPLETE application without it. 

School Information: provide your school’s phone number, address, and counselor’s name and email. 

Program Dates and Location: Select the name of the program location and date(s) you would like to be considered for admission. 

Student Info: provide date of birth, email address, home address, and phone number.

Parent Info: provide your parent(s) name, email address, home address, phone number, and occupation.

Please Note: Allow approximately 20 minutes to complete the entire application, you will not be able to save your incomplete application. Please plan accordingly.

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Scholarships

We provide financial assistance to students and families who demonstrate a financial need. Limited aid is available and an application is not a guarantee of financial assistance. Scholarships will be distributed until all funds are exhausted.

Applying for a NAPCA Scholarship

Parents will need to complete the online scholarship application and upload additional financial information to be considered.  Parents should submit ONE scholarship application per family.

Online Scholarship Application: https://summer.napcaonline.org/scholarship-application

The scholarship application deadline is on a rolling basis until all funds set aside for families in need have been distributed. We will do our best to help as many students and families as possible but we cannot guarantee that every student that applies for a scholarship will receive the financial support they need.

Fundraising

Online Fundraising

Many of our students have used gofundme.com, kickstarter.com, and indiegogo.com to do online fundraising. Students and parents have reported that online fundraising was one of the best ways to secure the additional funds needed to cover their cost to attend the NAPCA Summer Academy. Our students and parents wrote a compelling letter to ask for donations from family and friends. Additionally, parents that maintained a Facebook page, they placed the donation letter on their Facebook page to spread the word to family and friends.

Online fundraising has proven to work for our students and parents. If you need help setting up your online fundraising website, our student support team is here for you. You can set up your personal online fundraising website in about 15 – 20 minutes. 

To start raising funds online now, go to:

gofundme.com

kickstarter.com 

indiegogo.com 

Please contact our NAPCA Student Support Team (support@napcaonline.org) to receive assistance with your fundraising efforts. We can help you develop your own personal fundraising web page.

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Frequently Asked Questions

faq girls

Our Program

The heart of the NAPCA Summer Academy is our career focused curriculum, which is designed to help your student explore different career paths to help them learn about future academic and career possibilities and make connections with professionals from different career fields to get a taste of what a future career might be like. This will also help students have a better idea of what they want to study in college and start participating in internships or volunteering their time to experience their future career path. Students may find that they actually don’t like a certain career, and it’s better to learn this now, than when they are already in college and have spent a lot of time and money on an academic major or career training program that they no longer want to pursue.

While building lasting relationships with peers, students will participate in a rigorous weekly program schedule filled with lots of indoor and outdoor fun activities and supplemental academic instruction courses in mathematics, writing and grammar, and public speaking. Students will also engage in academic skills development seminars, social-emotional development workshops, and career exploration seminars and simulations. Additionally, students will experience college life through interactive college tours designed specifically for elementary and middle school students.

Yes!  In California, organized camps are under the jurisdiction of the California Department of Health and therefore exempt from Child Care Licensing, which is overseen by the Department of Social Services. All of our California locations adhere to the 300 health and safety standards by the American Camp Association. Each Spring, we reach out to all local health departments to notify them of our summer program operations to ensure that we’re satisfying all of their requirements for Day Camps. Since licensing requirements and exemptions do change from time-to-time, we’ll continue to monitor and respond to updates in our requirements as a Day Camp in California.

We provide continental breakfast, lunch, and healthy snacks for our students.  Most of our lunches come from local food vendors and are prepared fresh just moments before lunch. If you decide, for whatever reason, to pack a lunch or additional snacks for your child, please leave out any products containing nuts for the safety of other children who may have severe allergies.

Admissions & Scholarships

Admission Requirements for Elementary School Programs

Grade Requirement: 

Current 1st – 5th grade students are invited to apply for admission to the NAPCA Summer Academy at all program locations. 

 

Academic Performance:

We are looking for students who are serious about academics and have a strong commitment to strengthening their academic performance in school.

 

Personal Commitment:

Your commitment to taking ownership of your future college and career goals is the most important factor in our process of selecting students for admission. 

 

Teacher Recommendation:

We require one recommendation for each child applying for admission. The recommender must be from an academic teacher. Ask the recommender to complete the Online Recommendation form for your child, which can be found and completed at summer.napcaonline.org/teacher-recommendation

 

Admissions Interview:

Within 2 weeks after you have submitted a complete online application including the required documents for admission, the student and their parent(s) will be contacted by one of our staff members and will be asked to complete an admissions interview via telephone or video chat.

Student Interview (Telephone or Video Chat):

The student interview typically takes approximately 10 minutes to complete. During the interview session, we will ask your child questions related to their academic performance in school, favorite and least favorite part of the day at school, activities they are involved in at school and outside of school, and the types of activities they expect to engage in at our summer program. The purpose of the interview is to get to know each student to ensure our program will be a good fit for them. Additionally, students along with their parents will have an opportunity to ask specific questions about the NAPCA Summer Academy.

Parent Interview (Telephone or Video Chat):

The parent interview typically takes approximately 10 minutes to complete. During the interview session, we will ask questions to get a better insight on the areas (academic and non-academic) you think your son or daughter needs improvement and where your child is today as it relates to exploring and experiencing different career pathways to help your child discover their future career path.

 

Most Recent Academic Report Card

Ask your school or academic counselor to provide you with a copy of your child’s most recent academic report card as you will need to upload to your online admissions application.

 

Admissions Process:

  • Applications for admission are reviewed weekly and admission decisions are made on a rolling basis. We will take applications until all seats have been filled. Students are notified of their acceptance to the program within 2 weeks after they submit their online admissions application.
  • There is NO application fee and deadline to apply! We begin accepting applications on November 1 and will continue to accept applications for admission until all spaces are filled. If your program or location is full and you are a qualified applicant, you will be placed on the waitlist.
  • You will be notified of your acceptance to the program by email. The notification is sent to the email address provided in your application for admission. Be sure to use an email address that you check frequently.
  • After you receive your letter of acceptance to the NAPCA Summer Academy, you must pay your program fee in full or pay at least 10% (nonrefundable deposit) of your total program fee to hold your seat in the program. If you do not submit at least a 10% nonrefundable deposit within 2 weeks after you have been accepted to the program, your seat may be given to another student. Please contact us if you are having difficulty making your nonrefundable deposit. 

Yes. Parents will need to complete the online scholarship application and upload additional financial information to be considered.  Parents should submit ONE scholarship application per family.

Online Scholarship Application: https://summer.napcaonline.org/scholarship-application

Applications for admission are reviewed weekly and admission decisions are made on a rolling basis. We will take applications until all seats have been filled. Students are notified of their acceptance to the program within 2 weeks after they submit their online application including required documents and completion of the student and parent admissions interview.

There is NO application fee and deadline to apply! We begin accepting applications on November 1 and will continue to accept applications for admission until all spaces are filled. If your program or location is full and you are a qualified applicant, you will be placed on the waitlist.

You will be notified of your acceptance to the program by email. The notification is sent to the email address provided in your online application for admission. Be sure to use an email address that you check frequently.

After you receive your letter of acceptance to the NAPCA Summer Academy, you must pay your program fee in full or pay at least 10% (nonrefundable deposit) of your total program fee to hold your seat in the program. If you do not submit at least a 10% nonrefundable deposit within 2 weeks after you have been accepted to the program, your seat may be given to another student. Please contact us if you have any questions.

Our Staff

10 STUDENTS PER STAFF

Our student’s safety and providing the best supervision is our priority. Our student to staff ratio is 10 students or fewer per staff.

Yes. Criminal background checks, sexual offender checks, and personal and professional references are mandatory for all staff members. Each program location has a Director and staff members who are CPR & First-Aid certified. We regularly evaluate our program staff and instructors to make sure our high standards are met.

Yes. All program staff are required to attend regional training sessions prior to the start of each summer program.

FRIENDLY AND HIGHLY EXPERIENCED STAFF

Our instructors are passionate about teaching college and career readiness courses  — this is a must. We recruit industry professionals, college graduates, current Masters and PhD degree students, and upper-level undergraduates. Many NAPCA alumni return to “pay it forward” once they’re qualified to serve on our staff roster.

Our Students

Absolutely! We can accommodate children with special needs—within the limitations of our resources, natural surroundings, facilities, staff ratios, and program standards—while preserving the nature of the learning experience for all students. We are not able to provide an attendant (one-on-one staff member) to address a student’s personal needs, nor can we accommodate medical conditions or impairments requiring treatment beyond the scope of our staff.

Before enrolling a child with special medical, mental, or psychological needs, please contact us to discuss potential accommodations.

Every state has different regulations on how to store and administer medication in a program setting. We are aware of, and follow, each state’s specific requirements. We have a consulting physician that has set our policies and procedures according to the regulations of the state. Additionally, at each location, there is at least one person who has the state required training around first aid practices. You can reach out to our office to find out the specifics for how we can support your child’s needs.

We have had students who used insulin pumps or needed injections attend our program. We are happy to remind students to come to the program main office, giving them a quiet place to administer their insulin and rest. If a student requires support in order to interpret the results or receive their insulin, we can work with you to provide that.

Each situation will be addressed differently depending on the nature and circumstances of the incident. If there is an incident that is pretty minor (i.e. first time incident, no one seriously hurt), we’ll speak to the children to let them know that sort of behavior is unacceptable. We’ll also connect with their parents to let them know about the incident. If this were to happen repeatedly, we would consider asking a child not to come back. If there is a more serious incident involving any kind of significant injury or if a child poses a risk to himself/herself or others, we would call the parents immediately to have that child picked up and would consider asking them not to come back.

Very rarely does bullying (unwanted, aggressive behavior that involves a real or perceived power imbalance and is repeated, or has the potential to be repeated, over time) occur at our program. Bullying includes actions such as making threats, spreading rumors, attacking someone physically or verbally, and excluding someone from a group on purpose. We take bullying very seriously and involve the parents and children of all parties to have a deeper discussion and take action from there accordingly to keep all students safe.

Safety and Security

Safety and security are always top of mind. There are a number of things we do to ensure the safety of our students. At each location, we closely monitor who is entering and leaving the campus at all times. We set up our locations so there is one main entrance/exit. If there is a gate that cannot be closed to secure that entrance/exit, we’ll have someone stationed at or near it at all times so there is constant supervision of who is coming and going.

Any adult who is on-campus (beyond our check-in/out area) must have a valid background check on file with us or be escorted the entire time by one of our staff members. This is for the safety of all students in our care. Parents, guardians, or other designated pick-up persons who may wish to come onto a location must wait until a staff member is able to escort them.

When students arrive to the program, they sign into our custom-built database, which has all of the information that was provided by the parent when they registered, including who is allowed to pick up their child. When students sign in, they receive a badge, which is a physical indicator that the child has signed in and is registered.

At the end of the day, anyone who comes to pick-up a student must be on the authorized pick-up list. A staff member will check the list (and the person’s ID) before letting the student leave. 

When choosing new locations for our program, security is one of the top priorities. We choose locations that are contained and easy to supervise. We also go to great lengths to set up our own physical barriers or to supervise entry and exit points on campus.

Weather

There are several things we do to address the summer heat. We set up shade tents so students can get some relief from the sun. We provide large water activities such as giant water slides and inflatable water play structures which will be offered on hot days. We always have lots of sunscreen on hand. Drinking water is always readily available. There are lots of indoor activities taking place throughout the day, and many of these take place in rooms that are air conditioned or equipped with fans.